Skip to content
An obstetrician and gynaecologist working in Dubai needs a DHA professional license for the title of Specialist or Consultant in obstetrics and gynaecology, activated against a facility licensed for the specialty. The licensing route is the standard DHA route. What decides your day to day practice is the setting: an outpatient clinic covers consultations, ultrasound and antenatal care, procedures needing deeper anaesthesia belong in a day surgery centre of the right class, and deliveries belong in a hospital with a maternity service. This page covers the route, the titles, and what each setting allows.
What is a DHA license for gynaecologists?
A personal license from the Dubai Health Authority for a defined title in obstetrics and gynaecology. It is not a facility license and it is tied to the facility it is activated against. It applies inside Dubai Healthcare City too, because professional licensing in the free zone is managed by DHA.
Titles: Specialist and Consultant OBGYN
| Title | Basis |
|---|---|
| Specialist Obstetrics and Gynaecology | A recognised OBGYN qualification with the experience required for your qualification tier |
| Specialist under supervision | Recognised qualification, experience requirement not yet met |
| Consultant Obstetrics and Gynaecology | The qualification plus the longer experience required at consultant level |
| Subspecialty titles | Recognised subspecialty training, for example reproductive medicine or maternal fetal medicine, assessed on its own qualification |
The tier of your qualification decides how many years of experience DHA requires. Check it in the professional qualification requirements before you apply.
DHA license requirements for gynaecologists
- A primary medical degree from a DHA recognised institution.
- A recognised specialty qualification in obstetrics and gynaecology.
- Post-qualification clinical experience for your tier and target title.
- Current registration where you last practised, plus a good standing certificate.
- A clean professional record and a case log that supports your experience claim.
- A job offer from a facility licensed for the specialty, in a setting that matches your intended practice.
Where you can practise: clinic, day surgery centre or hospital
| Setting | What it typically supports |
|---|---|
| Outpatient clinic | Consultations, ultrasound, antenatal care, contraception, minor procedures under local anaesthesia |
| Day surgery centre, Class A or B | Procedures under local anaesthesia or moderate sedation |
| Day surgery centre, Class CM or C | Deep sedation or general anaesthesia, two theatres and a full-time anaesthetist, surgery capped at two or three hours |
| Hospital with maternity service | Deliveries, caesarean sections, complex and emergency obstetrics |
DHA classifies standalone day surgery centres by the depth of anaesthesia permitted, and the service has to be consultant or specialist led with the treating surgeon on site until discharge. A clinic-only practice is therefore a consulting and antenatal practice, not a surgical one. If your plan includes deliveries you need a hospital affiliation, and that affiliation is worth settling before you accept an offer.
The licensing route step by step
- Check your qualification tier and the title you can hold.
- Submit the application and documents in the DHA licensing system.
- Primary source verification of every document, the slowest step.
- Receive the eligibility letter.
- Sit the assessment, or the interview where that applies.
- Secure a job offer at a facility licensed for obstetrics and gynaecology.
- Obtain the good standing certificate at the right moment.
- Activate the license against the facility.
Timeline, cost and renewal
Plan in months rather than weeks. Verification depends on your university and former employers, the assessment adds scheduling time and activation depends on the employer. Fees are set per profession and title and are payable regardless of outcome. Renewal requires continuing medical education points, see renewal and CME.
Why OBGYN applications get delayed
- Applying for Consultant when the qualification tier supports only Specialist.
- Verification stalling on a training hospital that does not respond.
- Accepting an offer from a clinic without a hospital affiliation, when the plan was obstetrics.
- Subspecialty training claimed without a recognised subspecialty qualification.
- Good standing certificate expiring before activation.
Frequently asked questions
Can a gynaecologist deliver babies in a Dubai clinic?
Deliveries belong in a hospital with a licensed maternity service. An outpatient clinic covers consultations, ultrasound and antenatal care.
Do I need a separate license for ultrasound?
Ultrasound in your own specialty is part of your scope of practice as licensed. The facility needs the equipment approved and the service on its license.
Is a DHA license valid in Abu Dhabi or Sharjah?
No. Abu Dhabi licenses through DOH and the Northern Emirates through MOHAP, with their own routes.
Can I start before I have a job offer?
Yes for verification, eligibility and the assessment. The offer is needed for activation.
